Syrian Hamster

Syrian Hamster

The Syrian Hamster is sometimes referred to as the 'Golden Hamster' due to its original wild golden colouring although today there are many different colour and coat mutations. It is also sometimes referred to as the Standard or Fancy Hamster and Long Haired Syrian hamsters are sometimes referred to as 'Teddy Bear Hamsters'. In addition the Hairless Syrian Hamster is sometimes referred to as the 'Alien Hamster' and the Black Syrian Hamster is also referred to as the 'Black Bear' or 'European Black Bear' Hamster. The Syrian Hamster is the most common type of hamster kept as a pet and is approximately 6-7 inches in length with a very short tail. It has hairless feet with four toes on the front feet and five on the back feet. The Syrian Hamster has expandable cheek pouches which it uses to collect and carry food and bedding and it can carry up to half its body weight in grain in its cheek pouches The Syrian Hamster is a solitary animal and will not usually live with another past 8-10 weeks of age and so it is important that they are housed separately as serious fighting, even death can occur if more than one are kept in the same cage. The Syrian Hamster is nocturnal, usually waking during the evening. The Syrian Hamster makes a good pet and easy enough for small children to handle under supervision. The average lifespan is 2-2½ years although they can live longer and up to 3-4 years is not too unusual.

Behavior
In the wild...In the wild the Syrian Hamster lives alone and is fiercely territorial, attacking any intruders or other hamsters it may be confronted with during its travels. They live in individual burrows a distance away from any other burrow of another hamster. They are nocturnal sleeping during the day (although they may wake for short periods) and awake at dusk becoming active at night. Their sight is poor but their senses of smell and hearing are very acute. During the night the Syrian Hamster will travel collecting food, returning to its burrow several times to empty the contents. In one night the Syrian may travel up to 8 miles in this way
In Captivity

In captivity the Syrian Hamster's solitary instinct prevails and once mature it will not normally accept the company of another hamster. Although they live together as babies and are often seen caged together in pet shops or at the breeders, as the hamsters mature their solitary instinct develops. Syrian Hamsters will not, therefore, usually tolerate the company of another hamster once they reach approximately 6-10 weeks of age when fighting starts to occur. These fights may not be serious at first but as the hamster matures the frequency and severity of the fights increase. The fights most often take place during the night when the hamsters are most active and so often goes unobserved until serious injury or even death of one or both hamsters occurs. Therefore Syrian Hamsters should be housed separately once purchased in order to prevent injury - the golden rule is one hamster, one cage
Biology

Order Rodentia Family Cricetidae Genus Mesocricetus Specie auratus Size 15-20cm Weight 2-3 grams (birth), 180-210 grams (adult) Body temperature 97-100F Heart rate 280-500 beats per minute Respiratory rate 35-135 per minute, 74 average Toes front 4 Toes rear 5 Adult Food consumption 10-15 grams per day Adult water consumption 30 ml per day Gestation period 16 days Captive Lifespan 2-2.5 years although over 4 years has been known
Colours

The 'original' colour of the Syrian Hamster in the wild is golden brown but as Syrian Hamsters have been bred over the years a number of colour mutations have occurred. Some colours are referred to as Agouti whilst others are referred to as Self. Agouti means that the hamster has the original wild markings, that is the coat is a darker colour at the roots (undercolour) than on the top, the belly is off-white and the hamster has darker cheekflashes which extend from the bottom of the jaw up towards the ear with off-white crescents behind. Self coloured hamsters are the same colour all over (top and belly) with no cheekflashes - these usually have a white chin stripe and may also have a white spot or patch on the chest or belly. In addition to the natural agouti and self mutations that occurred over the years a variety of additional colours can be created by combining the different colour mutations together.